1992 Bears team photo. Unfortunately it would be
the last for Mike Ditka and his coaching staff. Michael McCaskey, bottom
left, would appear in many more.

During a preseason game in August 1992, Mike Ditka was quoted by the television
commentators as saying "I feel better about this team going into the season
than I did in 1985." Whether Ditka said this to distract attention from the
turmoil brewing around his camp is unknown, but there were obvious questions.

For starters, 12-year veteran all-pro center Jay Hilgenberg
was holding out for more money, and would end up being traded to Cleveland for
a fourth-round pick. Aside from Hilgenberg, the entire offensive line was a
question mark. Jerry Fontenot would prove to be a great replacement for
Hilgenberg, but who would replace the recently retired left tackle Jim Covert?
1991's first round pick Stan Thomas was weak in his rookie year, so Chicago
spent their 2nd round pick in 1992 on another tackle, Troy Auzenne from
California. The plan was to move Thomas to his more natural right tackle spot
when Keith Van Horne retired, and for Auzenne to start as a rookie on the left
side. The rest of the line was left over from the '85 super bowl team, and was
aging.

At running back, both Anderson and Muster were coming off a
disappointing 1991 filled with injuries. The receiver positions were still
lacking the top speed it lost with the trade of Willie Gualt in 1988. Tom
Waddle and Wendell Davis were great possession receivers, but a team with the
pair as its starters would not stretch defenses. There were similar questions
on the defense.

The defensive line was aging, although the team did draft
Alonzo Spellman in the '92 first round, and Chris Zorich in the second in '91.
For the linebackers, Mike Singletary had announced that '92 would be his final
year. John Roper and Ron Cox provided excitement at times, but were injured
much of the time. The solid core of the Bear defense was still the secondary.
Donnell Woolford, Mark Carrier, and Shaun Gayle were dependable starters, and
Lemuel Stinson had his exciting moments, but he appeared to lose a step since
his injury in 1990.

The Bears were set to open the season by hosting the Detroit
Lions, 1991's NFC Central Champions that had embarrassed the Bears on national
TV the year before. For much of the Lions game, things looked encouraging. The
Bears came in to the contest with a score to settle from the previous season.
Neal Anderson scored 2 touchdowns, and it appeared his trademark flash was
back. As much as the offense was encouraging, the defense appeared to be
discouraging. The Bears led in the fourth quarter, but Detroit came back on a
long TD run by Barry Sanders in which he bounced off several Bears, and they
scored again on a pass to Willie Green, on which Chicago blew the coverage. On
the Green touchdown, Detroit went up 24-20 with less than two minutes
remaining. As the stands emptied, the Harbaugh to Waddle magic began. Harbaugh
took the team down the field, and connected on Chicago's famous "13 Wing Jet"
play to Waddle for the winning touchdown with just one second remaining. If the
season opener was any indication, this would be another exciting year indeed.

In a style uncharacteristic of the Bears, Chicago followed up
its exciting win over Detroit with two September losses, at New Orleans and at
home against the New York Giants. The next week, they beat Atlanta 41-31 behind
an offense that rolled up almost 500 yards, including long runs by the
resurgent Anderson and Muster. The following week, the Bears held a 20-0 lead
at Minnesota in the third quarter, until "the play" occurred. Jim Harbaugh took
the team to the line, and called an audible-a short swing pass to Anderson in
the left flat. Whether Anderson didn't hear the audible due to crowd noise is
not known, but the pass appeared to be away from the running back, and it was
intercepted and returned for a touchdown by DB Todd Scott. Mike Ditka exploded
on the sideline as he never had before. The whole feeling of the game changed,
and Minnesota came back to win 21-20.

With that single game, and single play, the mood of the entire
Bears season went south. Ditka clashed with reporters on almost every occasion
they met. Many felt he "lost" his players, and they gave up on the season. They
hadn't given up quite yet, as during the next two weeks the Bears defeated
Tampa Bay and Green Bay. In these games, Jim Harbaugh had two of his best
statistical games ever. After seven games, the Bears stood at 4-3, tied for the
NFC Central lead with Minnesota. Coming up was a Monday Night matchup with the
team that had come back from a 20 point deficit three weeks earlier. There was
a carnival atmosphere in the windy city, as it was Bears tradition to right
themselves after a rough start and make the playoffs. But it would not happen
in 1992. Chicago lost 38-10 to Minnesota, and they weren't even in the game at
any point.

This loss set the stage for 5 straight losses. The first two
were last minute heartbreakers to Cincinnati and Tampa, then in the final
three, the Bears weren't close. The team was now 4-8 and out of the playoffs.
On December 13th, Chicago did beat a playoff team in the Pittsburgh Steelers,
and the win was impressive, 30-13. The team was inspired by Mike Singletary,
who was playing in his last home game. If only the team put that effort into
the other games in 1992 After two more losses, Chicago finished the 1992 season
at 5-11, their worst record in a full season since 1975. Speculation flew about
Mike Ditka's future.

At the conclusion of the 1991 season, Ditka had told the press
that he was coaching "overachievers", a comment that angered both the players,
and Bill Tobin's personnel department who picked them. It did appear that Ditka
had lost control of and the respect of the players. During the final two games,
Ditka made comments to the effect that he may not want to coach the team any
more without further control in the personnel area. Owner Michael McCaskey went
on a skiing vacation after the season, leaving Ditka hanging in the wind about
his future. The speculation ended on January 5, 1993, as Ditka was dismissed by
McCaskey. It was definitely the end of the fondest era in Bears history.

Quote of the Year: "What you are, I can't say on the
air. I'm 52 years old, and my office is at 250 N. Washington in Lake
Forest. I tell you what, you come up to my office, and I'll whip your
ass." -Mike Ditka to caller "Neal from Northlake" on his WSCR radio
show

Passing: Jim Harbaugh- Harbaugh was benched
for four games as Ditka shook up his roster, but led the Bears with 2468
passing yards. He finished with a 76.2 QB rating.

Rushing: Neal Anderson-Anderson had slowed in 1991 for
the first time, and slowed even more in '92. He led the team with 582
yards. This was only the third season since the strike year of 1982
the Bears didn't have a 1000 yard rusher.

Receiving: Wendell Davis-Davis led the team in
receiving yards and receptions with 54 for 734 yards. He only scored 2
touchdowns.

Sacks: Steve McMichael- Led the team with
10.5 sacks in his 13th professional season.

Interceptions: Donnell Woolford- Continued to
be known as one of the best corners in the game. Led the Bears with 7
interceptions on the season.

1992 Starters

4 QB

35 RB

25 RB

82 WR

87 WR

70 LT

62 LG

67 C

57 RG

78 RT

85 TE

6 K

95 DE

76 DT

72 DT

93 DE

55 LB

50 MLB

51 LB

21 CB

23 SS

20 FS

32 CB

17 P

Jim Harbaugh started 12 games at quarterback. Mike Ditka gave
backup P.T. Willis three starts when the season was lost, then started rookie
Will Furrer with disasterous results against Dallas in the finale. Neal
Anderson and Brad Muster were the usual starters at the running back position,
but Darren Lewis was given several starts as well. At receiver Tom Waddle and
Wendell Davis were the starters until Waddle was hurt, when second-year pro
Anthony Morgan was given more time. The offensive line featured the usual aging
starters, with new additons Troy Auzenne at left tackle and Jerry Fontenot at
center. The tight end was Keith Jennings. On defense, Ditka tried to shake up
his lineup several times during the season as both punishment and motivation.
Safety David Tate replaced Mark Carrier, Richard Fain replaced Lemuel Stinson,
and linebackers were shifted, but the usual starters are pictured here.
Left to right Offense: Jim Harbaugh, Neal Anderson, Brad Muster,
Wendell Davis, Tom Waddle, Troy Auzenne, Mark Bortz, Jerry Fontenot, Tom
Thayer, Keith Van Horne, Keith Jennings, Kevin Butler. Defense:
Richard Dent, Steve McMichael, William Perry, Trace Armstrong, John Roper, Mike
Singletary, Jim Morrissey, Donnell Woolford, Shaun Gayle, Mark Carrier, Lemuel
Stinson, Chris Gardocki.

#

Pos.

Name

School

Exp.

2

QB

Will Furrer

Virginia Tech

R

4

QB

Jim Harbaugh

Michigan

6

6

K

Kevin Butler

Georgia

8

10

QB

P.T. Willis

Florida State

3

17

P

Chris Gardocki

Clemson

2

20

S

Mark Carrier

USC

3

21

cb

Donnell Woolford

Clemson

4

23

S

Shaun Gayle

Ohio State

9

24

CB

Richard Fain

Florida

2

25

RB

Brad Muster

Stanford

5

26

DB

John Mangum

Alabama

3

29

WR

Dennis Gentry

Baylor

11

31

RB

Mark Green

Notre Dame

4

32

CB

Lemuel Stinson

Texas Tech

5

33

RB

Darren Lewis

Texas A&M

2

35

RB

Neal Anderson

Florida

7

36

S

Markus Paul

Syracuse

3

37

DB

Maurice Douglass

Kentucky

7

39

CB

Jeremy Lincoln

Tennessee

5

44

RB

Bob Christian

Northwestern

1

49

S

David Tate

Colorado

5

50

LB

Mike Singletary

Baylor

12

51

LB

Jim Morrissey

Michigan St.

8

52

C

Mark Rodenhauser

Illinois St.

5

53

LB

Dante Jones

Oklahoma

5

54

LB

Ron Cox

Fresno State

3

55

LB

John Roper

Texas A&M

4

57

G

Tom Thayer

Notre Dame

10

58

OL

Jay Leeuwenburg

Colorado

R

59

LB

Ron Rivera

Cal

9

60

T

Stan Thomas

Texas

2

62

G

Mark Bortz

Iowa

10

64

G

Mirko Jurkovic

Notre Dame

R

65

LB

Jim Schwantz

Purdue

R

67

C

Jerry Fontenot

Texas A&M

5

70

T

Troy Auzenne

Cal

R

71

DT

James Williams

Cheney St

2

72

DT

William Perry

Clemson

8

73

OL

John Wojciechowski

Michigan St

6

76

DT

Steve McMichael

Texas

13

78

T

Keith Van Horne

USC

12

79

T

Louis Age

SW Louisana

R

80

TE

Jim Thornton

Cal State Flrtn

5

81

WR

Anthony Morgan

Tennessee

2

82

WR

Wendell Davis

LSU

5

83

WR

Eric Wright

Stephen F Astn

2

84

WR

Ron Morris

SMU

6

85

TE

Keith Jennings

Clemson

3

88

WR

Glen Kozlowski

BYU

6

89

TE

Kelly Blackwell

TCU

R

90

DE

Alonzo Spellman

Ohio State

R

93

DE

Trace Armstrong

Florida

4

95

DE

Richard Dent

Tenn St.

10

97

DT

Chris Zorich

Notre Dame

2

99

DL

Tim Ryan

USC

3

Da Coach's Farewell Speech

"I'll try to do this with class, I don't know if I
can...Scripture tells you that all things shall pass. This too, shall pass.
Regrets? Just a few, but too few to remember. I can't sing it quite as good as
he could (referring to Frank Sinatra). Thirty two years, and I have a lot of
people to thank. I have a lot of coaches that I worked for over the years as a
player, as an assistant coach. Of course I have to thank Coach Halas. I guess
you've got to thank the players most because they make it happen. I was
blessed. I came here and I inherited a hell of a football team. Man, you've got
Walter Payton, you've got a hell of a football team. We drafted some good kids,
we took a run. Pretty good...we did a pretty good job. Players make it happen.
Had some great assistant coaches and respect every one of them. I really loved
every one I've ever had. Disagreements or no disagreements, they've been very
vital in my life. I've had my run-ins with you guys (referring to the media)
and I've had a lot of support from you. I appreciate it and I thank you. I
thank the fans of this city." "You know, the Bears will come back. Mike Ditka
will survive. I will land on my feet. There's no problem about that. I don't
worry about that. I worry about how this organization is perceived. I believe
it will go forward and try to do the things necessary to make the adjustments
to get through the '90s the way it should. I would hope that." "It's pretty
hard to erase 17 years. Not much else I can say but thank you, I appreciate it
and this, too, shall pass."

Did the Players quit on Ditka?

Call it a conspiracy theory, but to this day, I can't figure
out how a team that finished 5-11 and looked putrid much of the time could rise
up and beat the AFC-leading Pittsburgh Steelers 30-6. The Pittsburgh contest at
Soldier Field happened to be Mike Singletary's last game, and it was
interesting to see the team pull out all stops to defeat them. And look
horrible for the other eight of the final nine games of 1992. This leads one to
wonder, did some of the players quit on the coach?

A player that definitely didn't quit on the coach was Steve
McMichael. The day after Ditka's firing, the ever-quotable McMichael called
January 5th a "dark day in professional athletics." "Mike Ditka is the
embodiment of professional football, and for him to be fired is a travesty,"
McMichael said. "I played hard for that man, I really did. And it made quite a
difference when it's the fourth quarter and you're dead tired, and there's
nothing but pride standing on that sideline," he said. Former Bear Dan Hampton
chimed in to the defense of his former coach, stating "if they're going to use
a vacuum cleaner in Chicago, they're going to need some extra big bags. That
team laid down like a bunch of dogs..." Who in particular would Hampton have
been referring to?

Neal Anderson had a publicized rift with Ditka in 1991, but he
and others such as Jim Harbaugh were too professional, in this writer's
opinion, to "lay down." Hampton may have been referring to Richard Dent. Dent
always took offense to Ditka's cute habit of referring to him as "Robert" Dent.
Dent held out prior to the 1993 season, and offered some insight to his
relationship with Ditka. He told Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune about an
incident that occurred following the Bears' 1991 playoff loss to Dallas. "We
were coming off the field and Ditka said some things to me and, of course, I
said some things back. He called me some things that I don't allow folks to say
to me. Later, Ditka said one of us has to go, and Mike McCaskey had a meeting
with me and Ditka and Bill Tobin. That's when I told them to get me out of
here," Dent said. Whether this situation impacted Dent's play in 1992 is pure
speculation, and the coach's benching of players such as Harbaugh, Anderson,
Roper, Carrier and Stinson couldn't have helped morale. But one has to wonder
what would have happened if the team would have played with the heart they
showed against the Steelers.

The Hilgenberg Trade: The sticky situation
with Jay Hilgenberg's contract during the 1992 preseason would be an ominous
sign of things to come during that tumultuous Fall. Hilgenberg was signed as a
free agent prior to the 1981 season, served as the backup to veteran Dan Neal
from 1981-1983, then went straight to the Pro Bowl from 1985 to 1991. During
that time, "Hilgy" was regarded without question as the best center in
professional football, despite his "smallish" stature of 6'2" and 260 lbs. In
addition to his stellar play, Hilgenberg was incredibly durable, starting an
amazing 130 games out of the 132 played since he became the starter midway
through 1983. Hilgenberg's contract expired after the 1991 season, and in this
final year prior to the advent of free agency in the NFL, players with expired
contracts remained the property of their current team. In 1991 Hilgenberg made
$560,000, and as 1992's training camp opened, Hilgenberg was a holdout.
Hilgenberg and his agent Steve Zucker were asking that the center become the
highest-paid player at his position in the league. This figure was reportedly
$1.6 million per season. The Bears offered $850,000 and would not budge. This
standoff continued throughout training camp, with Zucker making public comments
such as "if this were any other player and team, we wouldn't be negotiating
this much, but Jay loves Chicago and wants to finish his career with the team
for which he's done so much." The Bears, led by VP of Finance Ted Phillips and
VP of Player Personnel Bill Tobin, countered that centers didn't make that much
in the NFL. The situation reached a climax on August 28th, the day of Chicago's
final preseason game against Dallas. That day, Chicago traded Hilgenberg to the
Cleveland Browns for a conditional draft pick in the 1993 draft. The pick would
be a second-rounder if Hilgenberg made his eighth-consecutive Pro Bowl, or a
fourth-round pick if he didn't. The Bears would eventually receive a
fourth-round pick, as the only Hilgenberg to make the 1992 Pro Bowl was Jay's
brother Joel, who played for New Orleans. After the trade, Hilgenberg signed a
two-year, $1.8 million deal with the Browns, and varying sources stated the
Bears and Zucker were only $100,000 apart. Hilgenberg played one year for
Cleveland, and spent his last season backing up brother Joel in New Orleans.

Anthony Morgan: Chicago was desperate for
speed at the wide receiver position during the 1991 draft, and were hoping they
picked up a "Willie Gault on a budget" when they selected Tennessee's Anthony
Morgan in the fifth round. Morgan opened 1991 as a starter and caught 13 passes
his rookie season, including a 84 yard catch-and-run at Indianapolis. The team
hoped that Morgan would emerge as a true threat in 1992, but due to off-season
knee surgery he didn't play until week four against Atlanta. The following week
against Tampa, Morgan caught the longest pass of the year, an 83-yard touchdown
from Jim Harbaugh. Against Cincinnati on Sunday night, he caught a 46-yard TD
strike, and gained 51 yards rushing against Pittsburgh in December. Morgan
continued to flash brilliance, but his numbers were still stagnant in 1992,
when he caught 14 passes for 323 yards and 2 touchdowns. The following season,
the new coach with a love for speed in all areas of the game would attempt to
work him in as a starter.

Ditka's Benchings: After two national-TV
letdowns in weeks 9 and 10 of the 1992 season, Head Coach Mike Ditka decided to
shake up his defensive roster to see if that would motivate his players. Out
were linebacker John Roper, safety Mark Carrier and cornerback Lemuel Stinson;
starting in their places were Ron Cox, David Tate and Richard Fain. The gamble
didn't change any outcomes, as Chicago lost heartbreakers at Tampa 20-17 and
vs. Green Bay 17-3. Against Cleveland on November 29, Ditka shifted his shakeup
to the offense, starting P.T. Willis at quarterback over veteran Jim Harbaugh
and Darren Lewis at halfback instead of Neal Anderson. Lewis supplanted
Anderson as the starter for the remainder of the season, and Ditka never went
back to Harbaugh as his full-time starter. The result was eight losses in the
final nine games of the season.

Ditka's Rage: Mike Ditka's sideline tirade
against Jim Harbaugh at Minnesota on October 4th will never be forgotten by
Bear fans, and certainly paved his way out of down. Some other choice
"Ditka-ism's" from 1992: Addressing the media after the Minnesota game:
"After 299 of the plays I've been calm and after one I've been excited. Yet you
sonofabitches had to make a big deal out of it. If you want to talk football,
talk football. If you think this is a God Damn soap opera, you're full of sh**.
Now, what else ya wanna know?" Ditka nearly went into the stands
after a heckling fan while walking to the tunnel after the game at Tampa
November 15th. Several of his players and coaches restrained him. An
animated shouting match was shown on the sidelines during the
second half of the Pittsburgh game. Its combatants-Ditka and tackle Stan
Thomas. Wouldn't we all like to know what was said...Thomas was supplanted in
the lineup by massive rookie Lewis Age for the final two games, and was
released prior to the 1993 season by Dave Wannstedt and staff.

Ditka's call-in show on WSCR radio became
more and more animated as the season wore on and losses mounted. The coach had
a falling out with good friend and one-time radio partner Ed O'Bradovich, and
Ditka finally snapped in December. When criticized for his personnel moves by
now-infamous caller "Neal from Northlake", Ditka said "What you are I can't say
on the air, but I tell you what. My office is at 250 N. Washington...I'm 52
years old, but you come down here and I'll whip your ass." (This coach didn't
need anyone to come to his defense against angry callers.)

A new era in the NFC Central began in 1992, with three new head coaches. Sam
Wyche took over in Tampa Bay, Dennis Green in Minnesota, and Mike Holmgren in
Green Bay. Green Bay and Tampa had been bad for years, while Minnesota reeled
primarily from the ill-advised 1989 farm sale for Herschel Walker. Holmgren was
hired by new Packer GM Ron Wolf, who had coveted QB Brett Favre at New York in
the 1991 draft. One of Wolf's first moves was to trade a first-round pick to
Atlanta for Favre, and the rest of that story is history. Wolf's move looks
especially smart when looking at the other quarterbacks drafted in the first
round that year: David Klingler by Cincinnati and Tommy Maddox by Denver.
Dallas completed its turnaround from a 1-15 team in 1989, to securing homefield
advantage throughout the playoffs in 1992. The Buffalo Bills won a weak AFC
conference, defeating the wildcard Pittsburgh Steelers in the championship
game. Dallas upset San Francisco 30-20 in the NFC Championship, then
annihilated Buffalo 52-17 in the Super Bowl.